| | I decided to write to 107.5 The River after getting tired of hearing Justin Timberlake being played more times than blackjack at Harrah's. Below is my letter to them -- I hope they respond.
Greetings:
I missed the opportunity to be on The River's Listener Advisory Panel, but I wanted to make sure my opinions were voiced. I have been a listener to 107.5 in Nashville since I was a kid, listening to Y107 and the Fat Five at 9 in middle school, even listening through the conversion into The River. Over the past few years, things have been getting worse as far as programming goes. I noticed a downturn as early as March of this year when I started paying attention to the frequent airtime of certain songs in a scheme that almost reeks of the days of payola. While at work on Friday, November 10, 2006, I tuned into 107.5 The River to start my day, and I decided to keep a running tally of all the songs played throughout the day. I kept a record from two sources -- listening to the radio while at my desk and keeping a tally of the songs on The River's website (http://www.1075theriver.com) in the "Last 10 Songs Played" window -- so I could get a total of the number of times a song or artist was played. I must say I was appalled at the lack of creativity in programming or even the variety of the programming. I have attached the list of songs that I made throughout the day with an attempt at entering the approximate time of the songs (within the hour) to show the frequency with which most of these songs are played.
I must say that after that work day, I will not be an avid listener of the station as I once was, regardless of what contests or promotions are run, until the variety is increased to allow more airtime for other artists. This seems like a blatant disrespect to the listener in a horrid attempt to play "all of today's best music." From looking at the list and listening to the station during the Friday work day, I can tell who The River's favorite artists are -- Justin Timberlake, Christina Aguilera, and Nickelback (who each had two singles alternated several times through the day); Evanescence, Snow Patrol, Jojo, and Hinder. All of these artists were played almost exclusively with a few other songs thrown in for spice. I noticed that "Baby Got Back" was added in to the playlist and has been getting extensive airtime, but what about all the songs that make up this generation? Why can we not hear songs that came out, say, last year or the year before? As much as I can't stand him, Nelly has not even seen much airplay for a while now; nor has 50 Cent; nor has Green Day; nor have several other artists. After hearing Justin Timberlake twice in one hour on two separate occasions, with one of those being within a standard clock hour (11:00-12:00) at 11:00 and 11:42, I wasstarting to get sick. Two of the artists/songs -- Papa Roach's "Scars" and Staind's "Right Here" -- have been in constant play since March 9, 2006, when I started listening and paying attention to the airplay. Does anyone at the station actually check these things before they go live? A song such as Justin Timberlake's "Sexy Back," which sounds like a broken record every time the chorus plays, should not be played as often as it is; nor should a song such as Hinder's "Lips of An Angel," which seems to condone adultery and cheating. Is this the kind of music that makes up "All of Today's Best Music?"
"Back In The Day Sunday" is the only time I can actually hear songs that heard growing up, so it's a welcome change from the usual repetitive drivel of the station. I wish I could hear some of the songs I grew up with along with today's "Best" music, not "All of Today's Most Overplayed Music," without having to constantly change stations. Anytime one of these repeat songs comes on air, I feel forced to change the station, listen to a CD, or turn on an mp3 player to avoid hearing the same thing I heard an hour ago.
My main question is this: can we have more variety, please?
Thanks.
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| | Posted 11/11/2006 11:05 PM - 509 Views - 4 eProps - 2 comments
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